Madeline and the Bad Hat (special)
'''Madeline and the Bad Hat '''is a 1991 Canadian-American animated television special produced by Cookie Jar and France Animation. It premiered on March 3, 1991. It's largely based on the book Madeline and the Bad Hat with minor adaptation changes. Plot A loose red balloon flies through Paris, eventually arriving at the Old House where it's retrieved by Madeline at the window. As always, she follows her friends downstairs by sliding on the banister. At the bottom greets the two house mice with a polite curtsey. The Girls leave for their morning walk. Madeline imagines her helium balloon is a large hot air balloon that can take her into the sky for all kinds of aerial adventures. Ms. Clavel pulls her back to reality as the Girls continue their walk. As they return to the school the Girls see a fancy car and a moving van pull up to the large house next door. They learn that the house will serve as the residence for the Spanish Ambassador and his family. They watch as the movers bring in all of the furniture and spot the Ambassador with his wife and young son. The little boy tries to get his parents and the embassy staff's attention, but they seem more concerned with other matters. Ms. Clavel points him out to the girls and he gives a stylish tip of his hat in their direction. He also demonstrates to his audience he is quite adept at one-armed handstands. Ms. Clavel says it's time for them to leave and they head back to the school. The boy looks downtrodden, as if he thinks they're leaving because they don't like him. Madeline stays behind to give the boy one more greeting. The boy smiles slyly at her before taking out a slingshot and shooting a stone at Madeline. She ducks and it pops her balloon. He mocks Madeline with a silly face and she storms off quite mad at the blatant act of disrespect. Later the girls are playing in the backyard. Danielle and Nicole are discussing the boy, thinking he will be fun to play with. Madeline, who has been starring daggers at the neighboring house, interjects sharply and says that the boy will be nothing but trouble. She declares him to be a 'Bad Hat.' She convinces the other Girls by judging what she sees of the boy's behavior, assuming he is rude and mean and borderline unstable. While we see in the other house that the boy is indeed wild and rude, it's also shown that his parents are far too busy to spend much time with him. After pranking the house maid by putting a frog in her tea cup, the boy laughs so hard that he drops his hat into the backyard. The Girls freak out over its presence, throwing it around before the boy runs over to retrieve it. He escapes back over the garden wall as the Girls now look at him with distrust. He merely blows a raspberry at them as he goes back into his house. The boy, now known to be named Pepito, starts causing trouble for the Girls through a series of pranks and showing off. During a morning school exercise regiment, he shoots a slingshot at Chloe, hitting her and causing much pain and surprise. While the Girls are roasting marsh-mellows one night, he hops on the garden wall dressed as a ghost scaring them. He flies kites far higher than they can from the roof of his house, boasting about it whenever he has the chance. He rudely cuts through them during their morning walks, giving a seemingly polite greeting to Ms. Clavel so she won't suspect his mischief. In the winter Pepito's an expert at ice skating, easily showing up all the Girls, including Madeline. By now Ms. Clavel thinks he's a young gentleman, much to Madeline's chagrin. One day, after about a year of living next to each other, Pepito invites the Girls to visit his house and view his toys and menagerie. The Girls take up his invitation with skepticism and are horrified as to what they see in his house. He's an avid hunter, capturing dozens of animals from around the neighborhood. He's shown to be quite cruel to them, keeping them locked in cages, not feeding them often nor bathing them. The Girls flee from the house in terror, with Madeline liberating a frog. She yells back to Pepito that his menagerie is an abomination. The other Girls all join in on the insults, calling him a bad hat. Seeing the Girls weren't interested in the menagerie, Pepito changes into a torero bullfighting outfit. As it's a manly custom in Spain, he assumes the Girls will be friendly with him. He tries to impress them with his skills, but Madeline tells him off and the other girls concur. Pepito feeling rejected and lonely returns to his house and shuts himself in. Later Pepito pranks a departing diplomat with a watering can from his balcony. The Girls watch vindictively as he does more handstands. Seeing that Pepito is hyperactive, Ms. Clavel suggests that he simply needs a hobby to channel his energy. She procures a tool chest for him, with Madeline warning her not to put tools (potential weapons) in the Bad Hat's hands. Nicole likewise is certain Pepito will build some evil contraption. Ms. Clavel dismisses their concerns, assured that Pepito will do something productive. Later they hear him from the school working on some project with the tools and Ms. Clavel assumes the situation has been handled. Unfortunately, the situation is FAR more grim than she believed. The Girls see from the window that Pepito has built a guillotine! He instructs his family's cook to bring him the chickens from the backyard. The Girls cry and Ms. Clavel looks quite ill as they watch the chickens executed. Later he eats the chickens in many different variations. By now the Girls are convinced he is pure evil. Some time later the Girls are out for a walk when Madeline unfortunately spots Pepito. However, he's not there to bother them. He's carrying a sack and being followed by all the dogs in the neighborhood. He leads them out to a nearby field with a windmill. The Girls follow out of curiosity and suspicion for what Pepito might do next. Ms. Clavel suggests that Pepito is simply misunderstood and that he's only bringing the dogs food. In the middle of the field, Pepito puts his plan into action. He drops a cat out of the bag, knowing the dogs will go crazy and try to catch it, maliciously calling it a game of tag. However, he SEVERELY underestimates the situation. Without any trees around, the cat jumps on Pepito's head for safety. The dogs tackle Pepito and start attacking him viciously trying to get at the cat. Pepito cries out in terror and begs for help. From across the field the Girls cry out as Ms. Clavel and Madeline sprint to his aid. By now Pepito's cries have raised in pitch and he's begging for god to intervene. His prayer is answered as Ms. Clavel manages to separate him from the dogs and Madeline rescues the cat. The dogs quickly calm down as Madeline and the Girls are far better with animals than Pepito. She sternly shoos them to go back home. Ms. Clavel tends to Pepito, realizing his naughty behavior is unacceptable and dangerous. Pepito has passed out from the attack so Ms. Clavel rushes him home. Dr. Cohn comes over quickly and goes to examine Pepito. Pepito's Father and Mother as well as the Embassy staff sob in fear over Pepito's condition, showing they do care for him very much. Dr. Cohn comes out of the room, assuring everyone that Pepito will be fine. The Ambassador thanks Dr. Cohn while his wife thanks Ms. Clavel. They resolve to spend more time with Pepito so his behavior and emotional health can be repaired. The Ambassador suggests the Girls go in to visit Pepito. Madeline is first. Despite being expected to make a full recovery, Pepito was beat up by the dogs pretty badly. He's in bed, covered in bandages and is very weak. Madeline has little sympathy for him as she knows the cat would have likely been killed by the dogs. She also chastises him for playing all the mean pranks on herself and the Girls as well as mistreating other animals. Pepito apologizes for his behavior and promises to make a change. Madeline tells him that's good and that the Girls will be watching him. Sure enough, Pepito emerges from the trauma a changed boy. He goes so far as to becoming a vegetarian. He also commissions the Girls to help him release all of the animals from his menagerie. Later the Girls go to the Zoo. Pepito follows them. He misinterprets what Madeline said and begins letting the animals out of their cages. The Zoo becomes chaotic very quickly. He goes to release the tiger and the Girls and Ms. Clavel prepare to run, but Madeline rushes up to Pepito. She tells Pepito that he is a wonderful boy and that he doesn't need to go overboard in showing it. They then quickly corral all the animals back into their cages, with Pepito throwing away his 'bad hat' to show he has really changed. Later everyone is at home, breaking their bread and brushing their teeth. The frog has since returned to Pepito as his pet. As Ms. Clavel puts the Girls to bed she says that she knew things would turn out well regarding Pepito. As the tale ends, Madeline and Pepito return one last time through dual iris-ins to wave to each other and wink to the audience. Foreign Language French * Madeline says, "Bonjour" (Hello) to her mice friends and Pepito. * Danielle says, "Oui" (Yes) in confirmation to Nicole. * Lulu says, "Mon Dieu" (My God) when she learns Pepito is a bad hat. * Chloe says, "C'est Terrible" (That's terrible) about Pepito. * Madeline says, "Oui Regardez" (Yes, look at this). * Pepito screams, "AU SECURS!" (HELP!) when he's attacked by dogs. Spanish * Pepito says, "Mira" (Look) to get his parents attention. * Pepito says, "Buenos Dias" (Good morning) to Ms. Clavel. She replies the same. * Pepito says, "Que Lstima" (What a pity) when the Girls reject his invitation. * Pepito screams, "Dios Mio!" (My God!) when being attacked by dogs. * Pepito's parents say, "Gracias" (Thank you) when thanking Dr. Cohn for treating Pepito. * Pepito says, "Ci" (Yes) in confirmation to Madeline. * Pepito says, "Adios" (Goodbye) to his bad hat. Trivia * Pepito is not mentioned by name until Ms. Clavel addresses him on the bridge. * The episode takes place over the course of a year (which may account for the episodes of the main television series where Pepito is absent). * The red balloon which is seen at the beginning of the special may be a reference to the 1956 French film Le Ballon Rouge.